C’s Alumni Update – Biggio’s Big Knocks Boost Fisher Cats To Eastern League Final

Posted on September 8, 2018 by

Vancouver Canadians Cavan Biggio

Cavan Biggio and the New Hampshire Fisher Cats have advanced to the Eastern League final.

cs_alumni_update_new_logoThe bat of Cavan Biggio is a big reason why the New Hampshire Fisher Cats are off to the Eastern League final. The 2016 Vancouver Canadians second baseman drove in three runs as New Hampshire completed a three-game sweep of the Trenton Thunder with a 5-1 triumph at Arm & Hammer Park.

The two teams had to wait out a nearly four-hour rain delay before getting this one and the wait was worth it for New Hampshire. 2014-2015 C’s infielder Gunnar Heidt and 2011 second baseman Jon Berti got a rally going in the third inning by drawing back-to-back walks with one out and Harold Ramirez kept the inning going with a two-out free pass. Biggio stepped up and saw Heidt score on a wild pitch before drilling a single to right to score Berti and Ramirez for the game’s first three runs.

Trenton answered back with one run in the bottom of the third off Markham, Ontario native Jordan Romano but New Hampshire would score two more runs in the seventh. Berti got a one-out double and scored on a Ramirezbase hit. After Ramirez went to second base on the throw home, he would score on another Biggio base hit to right.

2015-2017 C’s lefthander Travis Bergen got the final three outs of the ninth to send New Hampshire to the Eastern League championship series to face either Akron or Altoona.

C-Tweets

cs-tweetIt was a big night for two more former Vancouver Canadians as 2011 outfielder Kevin Pillar walked it off for the Toronto Blue Jays over Cleveland Friday night. 2014 DH Rowdy Tellez continued to double down his efforts in trying to lock up a spot on the 2019 Blue Jays roster.

 

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C’s Alumni Update – All Aboard! Saucedo Summernight & Pentecost’s Poke Give Fisher Cats 2-0 Series Lead Over Thunder

Posted on September 7, 2018 by

Vancouver Canadians Tayler Saucedo

Tayler Saucedo earned the victory for the New Hampshire Fisher Cats in Game 2 of their Eastern League playoff against Trenton Thursday.

cs_alumni_update_new_logoThe New Hampshire Fisher Cats held serve in its best-of-five Eastern League playoff series against the Trenton thanks to the efforts of two former Vancouver Canadians. The Fisher Cats rolled the Thunder 10-4 at Northeast Delta Dental Care Stadium to grab a 2-0 series lead in the best of five. The series shifts to Trenton Friday where the Fisher Cats have three chances to advance to the Eastern League final.

Vancouver Canadians Max Pentecost

Max Pentecost put New Hampshire ahead for good with a home run in his first at-bat Thursday.

2014 C’s catcher Max Pentecost put one over the right field wall to give New Hampshire a 3-0 lead in the first.

2016 second baseman Cavan Biggio knocked home a single by 2014-2015 infielder Gunnar Heidt as part of a two-run second inning and Josh Palacios delivered the final blow with a three-run triple in the eighth.

Pentecost and Palacios reached base twice with a walk and a hit by pitch respectively. Biggio had two walks along with his base hit and picked up a stolen base.

The winning pitcher was 2015 Vancouver lefthander Tayler Saucedo as he stranded an inherited runner for Hector Perez and tossed 3-2/3 shutout innings with just one hit and one walk allowed. Saucedo struck out three and recorded four groundball outs. 2016 righthander Zach Jackson got the first out of the eighth inning but left a hit and a walk for Danny Young but the 2015 lefty stranded those runners. Young would give up a run on two hits but he struck out one over the final 1-2/3 innings for the save.

The news was not as good for the Lansing Lugnuts as their season came to an end. They lost 4-3 to the Bowling Green Hot Rods to drop their Midwest League playoff series two games to nothing.

2018 C’s shortstop Vinny Capra drove in the first run of the game with an RBI single in the top of the second inning. The Lugnuts would not score again until the ninth when Ryan Noda lifted a sacrifice fly to score a single from 2017 C’s second baseman Samad Taylor. A Brandon Grudzielanek base hit scored another single from 2017 outfielder Norberto Obeso but the Lansing rally came up a run short.

2017 righthander Graham Spraker suffered the loss despite pitching seven innings of three-run ball, scattering six hits and a walk while striking out three. Fellow 2017 reliever Brayden Bouchey was tagged with an unearned run in the eighth.

C-Tweets

cs-tweetRowdy Tellez continues to hit up a storm, Nate Pearson returned to the mound for the first time in over four months and even more observations and videos about the New Hampshire Fisher Cats playoff series in Trenton come your way in the latest edition of C-Tweets.

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C’s Alumni Update – Berti, Biggio & Zeuch Zap The Thunder In Fisher Cats Series Opener

Posted on September 5, 2018 by

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T.J. Zeuch gave New Hamsphire a 1-0 series lead with six shutout innings over Trenton Wednesday.

cs_alumni_update_new_logoA trio of members from the 2016 Vancouver Canadians gave the New Hampshire Fisher Cats a leg up in their Eastern League playoff series against Trenton. T.J. Zeuch pitched six shutout innings and Cavan Biggio drove in a couple of runs as the Fisher Cats silenced the Thunder 8-0 at Northeast Delta Dental Stadium Wednesday.

Zeuch managed to navigate his way through six frames by scattering eight hits and a walk. The 2016 Blue Jays first rounder never had a clean inning but he induced two ground ball double plays and 2014 C’s catcher Max Pentecost threw out a runner try ing to steal second in the second inning.  Zeuch struck out five and had eight groundball outs.

Biggio followed a Bo Bichette RBI double that scored 2011 Canadians second baseman Jon Berti with a two-run double to open the scoring in the sixth inning. New Hampshire put the game away in the eighth with a Pentecost RBI ground out, a Josh Palacios RBI single and a Berti two-run knock as part of a five-run frame. Pentecost had a two-hit evening while Berti added a walk and stolen base to his resume.

2015-2017 C’s lefty Travis Bergen stranded a runner and worked around a hit and a walk over 1-1/3 shutout frames to earn the save. He struck out three and recorded one ground out.

Vancouver Canadians Andres Sotillo

Andres Sotillo had Lansing’s only multi-hit game against Bowling Green Wednesday.

The Lansing Lugnuts did not have a happy ending to their playoff opener at Cooley Law School Stadium as they lost to the Bowling Green Hot Rods 4-3 in 10 innings Wednesday. 2016 C’s backstop Andres Sotillo tied the game at 1-1 with a home run to right field in the fifth inning and 2017 outfielder Norberto Obeso tied the game in the eighth with a two-run triple to plate a pair of 2018 Canadians Vinny Capra and Jesus Navarro.

2017 Vancouver righty Matt Shannon suffered the loss as the Hot Rods strung together a two-out rally that involved a single, a walk and another single along with a Shannon throwing error that resulted in an unearned run. 2017 lefty Brody Rodning was nicked for a run in 1-1/3 innings.

2017 C’s reliever Graham Spraker will get the ball for Lansing in Game 2 Thursday at Bowling Green.

C-Notes

C's NotesCongratulations to Allan Bailey for being named the new general manager of the Vancouver Canadians. Allan was one of the first people I was introduced to when I arrived in Vancouver six years ago and I am glad to see him earn this promotion. He takes over for J.C. Fraser who is moving on to a new opportunity in the private sector. I wish Mr. Fraser the very best in his future endeavours as he successfully carried the baton from Jason Takefman after the 2013 season.

Congratulations also to the 2014 C’s duo of Rowdy Tellez and Jonathan Davis. Tellez delivered an RBI double off the bench in the sixth as part of Toronto’s 10-3 trouncing of Tampa Bay. Tellez pinch-hit for Davis who had a tough night at the dish with three strikeouts in three at-bats. Davis got the start in center field and batted ninth. 2014 C’s lefty Tim Mayza pitched a shutout eighth inning with one strikeout.

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C’s Recap – Canadians End 2018 With Win In Spokane & Polizzi All Over The Place

Posted on September 4, 2018 by

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Brandon Polizzi was everywhere at Avista Stadium Monday night.

C's RecapThe Vancouver Canadians wrapped up their 2018 season against the Spokane Indians at Avista Stadium on a winning note with a 7-4 triumph Monday night. The victory was the 40th of the season for the C’s as they finish with a 40-36 record.

Hunter Steinmetz started the Vancouver rally in the first with a double to left off Werner Leal and scored when Spokane shortstop Jonah McReynolds booted a Jake Brodt ground ball.

The C’s returned the favour in the third inning when Sterling Guzman botched a ground ball at third to allow Tyler Depreta-Johnson to reach base. A Troy Dixon ground ball to first scored the hypenated one to tie the game for Spokane before a Hasuan Viera singled off C’s starter Sean Wymer cashed in an Austin O’Banion double to give the Indians the lead.

Jesus Severino gave Vancouver the lead again in the fourth with a two-run double off Jesus Linarez to plate a Yorman Rodriguez infield single to short and a Guzman walk.

The C’s scored twice more in the fifth when McGregory Contreras doubled to center off Xavier Moore to score a Steinmetz single and Rodriguez brought in Contreras with a base hit up the middle.

The final two Vancouver runs of the season came in the eighth when a Brett Wright fielder’s choice scored a Guzman single and Brandon Polizzi singled to left to score Wright off Kyle Keith.

Spokane’s last gasp came in the ninth when Kevin Mendoza reached on a Guzman error at third with two away before Isaias Quiroz took Juan Nunez deep to left for a two-run home run. Nunez struck out Cristian Inoa swinging for the final out of the season.

Joey Murray picked up his first professional win with two scoreless frames after taking over for Wymer. Joey Pulido, Denis Diaz, Polizzi (more on him in a moment) and Connor Law provided shutout relief until the ninth.

Tal Tiedemann, former Canadian Bobby Eveld and Kelvin Gonzalez contributed shutout innings in relief for Spokane.

Vancouver Canadians Joey Murray

Joey Murray collected his first professional win with two shutout innings in Spokane Monday.

C-Notes

C's NotesOne day after 2016 Vancouver Canadian Nash Knight played all nine positions for Dunedin in its regular season finale, Polizzi did the same for the C’s Monday night. He played all nine positions starting at second base before making his way to shortstop, third base, left field, center field, right field, first base, pitcher and then catcher. Polizzi needed one pitch to retire Scott Kapers on a pop out to short. According to Rob Fai‘s account on CanadiansBaseball.com, Polizzi shattered the bat of Kapers with a 73 mile-per-hour offering.

The C’s lost their DH spot as Law and Nunez are listed on the batter’s portion of the boxscore. Otto Lopez pinch-hit for Law and drew a walk in his final plate appearance of the season. Steinmetz played center and left field, Contreras toggled between right and left, Brodt did the two-step at first and second and Reilly Johnson played left and second.

Vancouver Canadians Hunter Steinmetz

Hunter Steinmetz was one of two C’s to enjoy a three-hit night in Spokane Monday.

Steinmetz and Severino led the C’s with three hits apiece and Rodriguez and Guzman had two. The C’s had three hits in 15 tries with runners in scoring position and struck out 13 times. That was offset by 13 hits, two walks and a hit by pitch when Contreras took one for the team.

Wymer gave up two runs (one earned) on two hits and a hit by pitch and struck out five. Murray struck out three over two scoreless frames. Pulido struck out one in a perfect frame to finish the season with a 0.00 earned run avearage and just two unearned runs over 24-2/3 innings. Diaz struck out one of the two men he retired. After Polizzi’s one-pitch out, Law worked a one-hit eighth and Nunez was victimized for two unearned runs on a home run but struck out two in the ninth.

Though the C’s finished with the best overall record in the North at 40-36, they did not capitalize on having 17 of its final 23 games at home. Their inability to take care of business against their North Division rivals ultimately cost them by losing two of three to Tri-City and Everett at home and on the road. That’s why most of the players are heading home with a select few heading to Lansing to help their playoff drive.

Vancouver was not the only short-season team in the Blue Jays system that suffered a heartbreaking end to their year. The Bluefield Blue Jays lost to the Princeton Rays in three games in their division final. Had Vancouver made the playoffs, there may have been some reinforcements from Bluefield  in the form of 2018 first-round pick Jordan Groshans or Alejandro Kirk among others but they may skip past Vancouver and join Lansing in 2019.

Vancouver Canadians Rowdy Tellez

Rowdy Tellez has been promoted to the Toronto Blue Jays.

Congratulations to 2014 C’s designated hitter Rowdy Tellez as he is going to the show. Tellez was part of the 2014 C’s playoff roster and nearly hit a home run in Hillsboro but the C’s fell short of a four-peat in the Northwest League Final. After his mother passing away recently and struggling for the better part of two seasons in Buffalo, Tellez found his game and is now getting rewarded for his perserverance. He batted over .300 in July and August and finished with a slash line of .270/.340/.425 with 22 doubles, 13 home runs and seven stolen bases.

That will do it for C’s Recap in 2018 and you can find all 76 games summarized on CsPlusBaseball.ca. There may not be as many in 2019 and beyond with perhaps a focus on home games instead or any road games I hope to attend. Thanks for reading and keep checking back. I have a number of interviews with quite a few members of the 2018 Vancouver Canadians that have to be transcribed and I hope to have those online during the course of the off-season.

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C’s Recap – Canadians Collapse Complete As Spokane Wins Second-Half North Division Title

Posted on September 2, 2018 by

tanner_kirwer_fixes_gloves.jpg

Tanner Kirwer scored the only Vancouver run in Spokane Sunday.

C's RecapGame 76 of the Northwest League schedule between the Spokane Indians and the Vancouver Canadians has been rendered meaningless. The Indians clinched the North Division title for the second half with a 3-1 win over the Vancouver Canadians at Avista Stadium.

Tanner Gardner‘s RBI single in the fourth opened the scoring for Spokane against Elio Silva to score a Diosbel Arias single. A Starling Joseph fielder’s choice scored a Sherten Apostel single for the second Spokane run.

Spokane increased their lead to three when Isaias Quiroz homered to left off Silva in the fifth.

Rehabbing Texas Ranger Chi Chi Gonzalez retired all 15 hitters he faced.

Spokane lefthander Francisco Villegas sat down the next three hitters and Wes Robertson retired the first hitter of the seventh before Tanner Kirwer singled to break up Spokane’s no-hit bid. Griffin Conine walked and Yorman Rodriguez singled to score Kirwer but a Christopher Bec double play ball killed the rally.

Justin Watts and Orlando Pascual had three strikeouts apiece in relief for the C’s Sunday.

Justin Watts pitched 1-2/3 scoreless innings and Orlando Pascual tacked on 1-1/3 more scoreless frames to give the C’s another shot in the ninth.

Otto Lopez drew a walk with one out against Emmanuel Clase but Kirwer hit into a fielder’s choice and Conine grounded out to first to set off the celebration for Spokane.

Silva surrendered three runs on six hits and a walk with two strikeouts over five innings to take the loss. Watts gave up a hit and struck out three over 1-2/3 innings and Pascual issued one walk and struck out three over 1-1/3 innings.

C-Notes

The C’s conclude their season against Spokane in a 6:30 start at Avista Stadium. Sean Wymer (4-3, 5.01) gets the start for Vancouver. The game can be heard on TSN 1040 and CanadiansBaseball.com with Rob Fai.

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